Multiple unit concrete pump drive



Nov. 16, v1943. c. F. BALL MULTIPLE UNIT CONCRETE PUMP DRIVE Filed Dec. 27, l1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Nov. 16, 1943. c. F. BALL '2,334,375

MULTIPLE UNIT coNRETE PUMP DRIVE Filed Dec. 27, 1940 '3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Nov. 16, 1943. c. F. BALL MULTIPLE UNIT CONCRETE PUMP DRIVE Filed Dec. 27, 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 mmm-:FA-

lllllllllll Il Patented Nov. 16, 1943 UNITEDSTATES PATENT-FOFHCE Charles j F.v Ball,` Wauw Chain Belt Company, *poration of Wisconsin atosa,` Wis., assignor to Milwaukee, Wis., fa cor- 'Application December 27, 1940,.seriainasnsa 1 1 zoiaun's. (o1. wia-4c) The invention relates tomultipleunit concreteA pump drives, and hasr for its principal objectI to provide a simple and eiective drive mechanismr whereby the working elements of the individual units of a multiple unit concrete pump may be selectively connected to and disconnected from a common source of power for said units.

Single unit pumps of the type to whichthe invention is particularly applicableiare generically disclosed and Yclaimed in the prior U. S. Patent No. 2,017,975, granted October 22,v 1935, to Jacobus C. Kooyman, and in my prior'fU, S. PatentNo. 2,062,200, granted November 24, 1936, and-to the limits of their capacities of from 15, to 33 cubic yards per hour, have proven very eiiicient in the pressural pipe line transportation of .plastic concrete mixtures.` For structural and other reasons it s not very practical to increase thecapacities of single unit apparatus of this type materially beyond those above mentioned, and thereforewhen such increased capacities are essential it is customary to provide itby means of double or multiple unitl machines, in which two or more units are mounted` side bysside on a single ,frame and driven fromfa single Vsource of, power, such as a gasoleneengine or electric motor. u When concreteup to the capacity of these multiple unit machines is desired at a single point, itis thezusualpractice to combine the separatestreams of mixture YissuingV from the individual pumping units inte al single stream which is piped to the desired point.` 'Insome instances however, it mayY beA o f advantage to have simultaneous discharge of :the mixture at-two or more points, in which case aseparatefpipe line may be run from each unit tooneofthe discharge points. With such a set up it may become necessary to interrupt the discharge at one point while continuing it at others,4 and the present invenv tion enables this to be quickly and easily done by disconnecting one pumping unitffrom the source 9i power, thereby throwingit, out of operation, while the jremaining unit or units continue to function. i v

As was pointed out at some'length in the above mentioned patents, plastic concrete vmixtures, which contain relatively high percentagesV of coarse aggregates, when moving under pressure in confined streams are subject to packing'or stowing at restrictions ,orjsharp changes of direction in the conduits, a propertynot present in liquids, gases or plastics lacking the said coarse aggregates, Although inpractCe-,every eiort'is madev toavoid undesired -\stow.age,4 of the mix-V turcfitjmay nevertheless-occur at times, rendering one or'more of the units inoperative until the cause of the stowing has beenlocated and'` removed, andthe present invention maybe'utilized in such cases to cut out the affected unit until proper operating conditionsmtherefor arerestored. The same is ,also` true'4 should breakage or other necessity for repair of. any particular unit occur, the affected unitbeing ldisconnected from the"` source' of` power `during lsuchrepair while `remaining unit, or u nit'sQcontiriueto,v operate asusual.

With the above andothef. objects in viewwhich will appear as the description proceeds, the inventionmore specically comprises adrive especially adapted for multiple unit concrete pump use, which `includes a jack shaft drivenV from 'the source of power; a drive shaft connected thereto preferably by reduction' gearingj Van annular toothed'clutch element rigidly mountedv by said drive shaft in cooperative relation to each main driving gear with whic "the crank shaft `of each pumping .unit 'is'provided; a pinion constantly meshing with each 'of said mainfdriving gears, said pinions being rotatably and slidably mounted 'on the drivelshaft andvbeing ofV a length which is'suilciently greater thanjthe width ofsaid'main drive'gears that the end portions of their teeth may be slid into and out of engagement withthe teeth oftheir associated annular clutch element while the body portion of said pinion teeth ref main in mesh with thoseof the drive gears; a vshifting Yring or r"collarcarriedby `each pinion; a shifting fork connected to each collar; and manually operable lever connections for selectively actuating the forks to control the respective piniOIiS. 1 'A Referring to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this-specication, in which like reference characters designate like parts in all the views:V Y

Figure 1 is a plan view,more 'or les'sdiagralm` matic, of the essential portions of a double unit concrete pump of the type set forth inmy said prior Patent No. 2,062,200, and equipped with one form of selective drive mechanism Yconstructed and arrangedin accordance with my present invention; w f f Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional planview of the drive mechanism and immediateh7 adjacent pumpelements;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional elevational view, taken approximately on the plane indicated by the line 3-3 of Fig. 2,` looking in the direction of the arrows; and

n Fig. 4 is a sectional elevational view, takenl Each of the said pumping units comprises a working cylinder I2 in which apiston i3 is reciprocatable by means of a connecting-.rod- I4 actu-Y crank shaftI 6 .which is Each: Icylinder -I2 isvv ated by a crank I on a V driven by a spur gear I'I. also provided with an inlet valve I8 having an inlet opening I 9 leading fromk a suitable hopper or other source of supply for" the-plastic* mixture,

not shown, and with an outlet valve providedy with, a suitable fitting 2| `by means of which the dischargepipe line Vmay-be VvreadilyV detachably Asgxciired 'tolvl respective units; Suitable mechanismfforactuating the/said valves from the crank shafts I6 similar to thatdisclols'ed in' the said 'Kooyman andgBall patents abovefreferredlto is Valso provided but lisnot herefshown since 'it is immaterial-tof an ,understanding ofthe present invention." 'A lprirne Amover-22v `here'illustrated as an 'electricV motorismo'unted uponiiafplatform 23 and'its drive pulley24 ydrives ap1ura1Vfbe1tdriVeZ5- Theijpulleyi is mounted-'upenn jackshaft 3B Yconstituting.ftheV power inputshaft of 1 the drive mechanism constituting? the' presenti invention,

said pulley being preferablyconnected to the' said shaft by a suitableshear'pin coupling 3|l in lorder to avoid damage to the parts inythefeventlof dangerous overloads upon"'the.apparatus The saidjackshaft isericlosed in anent'ensionZ 'of a housing '33.'which'iis rnounte'dupon certain of the'longitudinalfranie members [l1 as willr be clear,v from Figs.1 1 and '2`which housinggis also provided withZ aL 'second .tubular extension 34 in axial ,alinement `witlithe first named .eztension '32. This extension 31 islrfeceived ilartby-apillqw blocker' bearing housings in aligner or other suitable ylzi'ez'ii'gSlis mounted for j fournalling in oneend `of Eth'e 'jack'shafft 3l), :thfother end ofwhich maybe journalled in a companion roller bearing,Slmountedrinthe tubularextension,34.A J '126' jack Shafts, riidlycarries a gear Orrinin, 33 Which.' lll-$51.135 'Withf s Compa-.9101115635 3.9 keyed,Y 0r Otherwisefrisidlrsecuredio drive Shaft k4i) of the present invention,y whichjshaft is journalledA in suitable ball or other anti-frictionbearings 4I, 42 mountedwithin the housing andan end platel 4 3 therecif-, Aswill beclear from Figs. 41 and 2 the drive sshaft'll'is-mounted11i-comperative relationship to the main driving gears-I1 of the crankshafts I @extending across theworking faces thereof, andthe said shaft has rslidably and rotatably journalledj upon it the gears orgpinions 45 the teeth-of which areinconstant mesh with those of the crank shaftgears I,'l.` i Y A o n The drive shaft y4Il;has keyed orzotherwise rigidly secured to it a clutch member-JH,V said member being located on the saidshaftatfa point intermediate the gearpairs II andx45, as will be readily understood from Figs. 1, 2 and A3. The lclutch member 46. is provided with two-'sets of annular internal teeth 48-disposed in axial alinement with the teeth of the respective pinions/45 for selective meshing engagementv therewith. It will benoted that thesaidpinions 45 are'of-an at puiieyzs through encircle the said pinion ends.

axial length which is suciently greater than the width of their companion gears I'I as to enable the said pinions to be slid axially upon the shaft 40 to bring the inner end portions of their teeth into engagement with the clutch teeth 48, While at the same time the main body portions of the said pinion teeth constantly remain in mesh with theteeth of the said gears I1.

i'hl'hejouter ends of the pinions 45 are circumferentially grooved as at 50 for the reception of annular anges 5I of shifting collars 52 which These said collars Hare provided with pins 53 engaged by the bifurcated-upper ends ,of the arms 54 of the shifting are rigidly carried by rock shaitsz56land 56 which are journalled in bearing sleeves 5l and 5 1 passing transversely through and being rigidly secured to the tubular extension 34 ofthe housing. The rock shaft 56 which is associated with and controls the drive for the pump unit R lhas fkeyed or otherwise rigidly securedtoit the -hub 6U of an operating lever'l which extends upwardl as best shown in Figs. 3 and 4, and to the upper end of which a link Y62 is pivotally connected as at 63.Y The said link 62 passes through van aperturein a bracket Amember 64 carriedgby the housingv33and'is provided-at its end with a -hand'grip 65y by means of which ysaid link may be reciprocated to os'c'illate the lever 6I and rock-the shaft 56Yto engage/and disengag'e'the pinion -45 associated with lthe pump -unit R with and from its clutch teethA 4I)l -as -will'fbe readily understood.` rThe said link 62 may bel'notchedias 4at 66 and 66' 4for' engagement with thebracketl to retain the'partsv in either engaged or disengagedfposition. Y 1": Journalled upon the 'rockshaft '56 intermediate-the hub 60 and the Ybearing sleeve 51 `is thehub 1D-of anoperating lever 'II Vfor the pump vunitr L, @which leverv` entends* upwardly andv is lprovided with a link 'I2 the construction and operation of which, including hand V notches, is or may be 'with that of the 'link A642'.- The said hubv 'lll however differs from the hub 60 inthat the hub Tl) also rigidly* carries an' 4armi-15l which is connected-by Ylinks 'I6 to an armv 'H vcarried by a hub -78 keyed-or'otherwise rigidlyy securedto thefrock shaft '56' which controls the pinioni driving the gear I1 of the unit L of Athe pump. The provision -of vthis linkage 15, f6 --and 'I'I enables botlilin'ks l'IZand'I/Z to be moved rin the samedirection for the purpose of engaging their respective 'pinions with the clutch teeth '46 vand in 'the same oppositedirection fordeiectingfdisengagement thereofthereby avoiding any coni fusion `on -the part of the operator as tothe direction in which .eitherimk -sz 017512- is to fbe moved to attain .a desired position lof'theypiniox'is The 'loads imposed uponV the working 'parts lof these pumps arequite `heavy in View of--which it" is dangerous 'and impractical -tofsh'iftthe pinions 45 into-meshing 'engagement with'the clutch teeth 48 While the latter are rotating; and therefore such shifting is ordinarily-done fwhile the i clutch and fits. shaft -40 are stationary, either through stoppage jot the electric motor 22,'01' through disengagement -Of the ma'finw-cluffch of the* apparatus where a gasoline Asubstantially identical grip and it is essential that in atwo-unit pump L atingconditions the several pumping units be either way will not materially effect the output of the pump. If

desired, suitable marks may be l placed upon the crank shaft gears Il to aid the operator in bringing the units into proper phase relationship.

It will be seen from theabove that the present invention provides a relatvelysimple andv effective drive for selectively controlling` the operations of a pluralityof pumping units whereby any unit may be cut into and out of operation by the single source of power Awithout affecting the operation of As above explained, this is of vital importance in connection with the pumpingfof plastic concretemixtures. In instances in which the several units are delivering to a single pipe line should one'of them become damaged thus necessitating repairs, or become clogged due to stowing of the mixture within it, the entire machine must be shut down until the difficulty is over'- come unless a selective drive such as or equivalent to that just disclosed be present. With to lclean ing setting therein.

While one form of the invention-has been illustrated` and describedv it is obvoius that those skilled in the art may vary the details parts without `departing from vthe spirit of the invention and therefore it is not wished to be lim. ited to the vabove disclosure except as may be re'- quired byjthe claims. i

What is claimed is:

' 1. A `selective drive ymechanism for concrete Y' pump or `like machine having at least two units each having operating elements to be driven from a` single source, said drive mechanism comprising a housing; a shaftjournaled in said housing to be driven by said .power source;` means for connecting and disconnecting theoperating elements the remaining unit or units.

Vwhich another pumps so equipped, however, the procedure is to pump out all of the` concrete in the hopper and then shut down the pump while the piping con-v nection between the single pipe line and the several units is `disengaged and a new piping connection made with the unit or units which will be operable thereafter. After` blocking off 'the feed from the hopper being cutout,

pipe line may be .resumed with the remaining pumping unit or units. The disengagedunit is flushed with water to` prevent4 concrete from setting in it, and whatever work `it may be'necessary 1 to perform is done'with'out requiring a cleanout of the entire pipe line. y i Y lThis isv desirable, notonly in case of repairs, but also, on jobs requiring a continuous pour, where it may not be possible to maintain the capacity of all the pumping units for the duration of the job, the'extra' pumping units afford additional stand-by capacity.

The entire time `consumed for breaking the pipe line connection and cutting off a pump should in any case be less than that usually required by the concrete to pipe line. Without means for selectively establishing and breaking driving connection for the different pumping units, should a prolonged interruption occur, the plastic mixture inthe ento the unit which-.isV oncrete placement through the segregate or set in the vil() tire concrete transporting system would have to be thoroughly cleaned out,'since to; permit the of each unit-to said shaft at will, including a movable clutch member for each unit, at least y one of which members is movable to its connecting position in a direction opposite tothat in of such members is movable for a like purpose;v a rock shaft journaled in a portion of said housing adjacent each movablefclutch Y member, and provided with means` engaging the latter to shift thesame; a pair of operating 1evers carried by one of said rock shafts, one of whichlevers is rigid with said shaft whilethe other lever is `journaled thereon and provided with'a rigid angularly extending arm; an` arm rigidly'mcarried byan adjacent rock shaft; andl connections between the free ends of said arms, whereby motion of Vsaid journaled operating lever in a given `direction will produce motion of the clutchmemb'er controlled thereby in a direction opposite to that imparted bythe other operating lever toits clutch member when such lever is moved in said given direction. i v

2. In a selective drive mechanism for transmittingv power from a single source either simultaneously or alternatively at will to a plurality' of individual pumping units of a concrete pump, said `mechanism having a power-driven shaft, and a clutch for each unit, each of which clutches includes a clutch lmember movable inra direction opposite to that in which the like member of the other clutchmoves to make and break a powertransmitting connection between its unit and said shaft: means for independently controlling said yclutch members, comprising a separate actuating member for each clutch for positively shifting `its movable clutch member to and from 4power-transmitting position; connections between said actuating members and their respective clutch members whereby vlike-directional movements of ythe former in either direction will cause positive opposed-directional movements rof the latter; and means for positively lindependently retaining each `clutch' in or out of power-transmitting condition at will.

y CHARLES F. BALL.

of construction as well as the precise arrangement, of 

